Raising Royalty

Great Idea Sarah!

2011-05-25T23:58:00.000-07:00

Meet Paige.
Truly a new introduction is needed.
She's worked through 99 % of her challenges in only 9 months.
She is amazing.
She is Paige.

A friend of mine (also on this blog as a link) is going to put her blog set to private. After thinking about it, I too, am going to set this blog to private. There are super positive big things that are coming up for Paige and opportunities that are really amazing (example: she just turned 4 a few weeks ago and she will be starting an accelerated Kindergarten in a few months). There will be a lot of information about what's going on and therefore this blog will no longer be open for viewing for the general public.

So, if you are a hard core supporter of this blog (hahahaaah) I will put you on the viewing list. I'm not booting you out of our life but more importantly booting out lookie-loos that may misuse information for political poop or crazy talk. I monitor all comments and they are not public until I approve them. So if you want to be added to the viewing list please leave your email in the comment box and I will not post your email or sell it (hahahah) to advertisers. Instead I will use it as your permission to log in and see this blog.

Videos are waiting to be posted. Pictures are waiting to be posted...etc.

So this will be my last post in public view. I will leave this on for a few weeks.

Happy "almost summer" everyone!
Kendra

2011-04-18T23:53:00.000-07:00

What has been happening here you ask?

Our master bedroom and master bathroom have finally been completed in its remodel (okay so we're in need of a light fixture and a few putty issues here and there...but done for the big stuff). Paige's bathroom only needs paint and then it is completed. The exterior trim of the windows needs painting too.
Tom went away for a business conference in Atlanta. Thankfully Uncle Chuck was able to pick Tom up at the airport as Paige was sick.
Paige went to school for the first time in 3 weeks and less than 48 hours later got the stomach flu. She's doing much better now as she's had 3 days to recover.
Tom sprained his ankle kicking a soccer ball up the driveway to prevent it from rolling into the cull-de-sac. He is able to drive and go to work but was out for the whole weekend. I'm beginning to think it was a great way to avoid lawn mowing...
I'm emotionally exhausted from all the ups and downs of Paige's health. She is 41 inches tall and weighs 29lbs (clothes on after drinking soy milk).
I am a firm believer dairy is causing issues for Paige. I tried a few little experiments with her drinking milk and an intolerance was very much present. Later in the day I gave her soy milk. Her body handled it very well. Kids with dairy issues often have reoccurring ear infections and sinusitis among other common symptoms. Paige has 90% of the symptoms.
I am still tutoring and will be adding new tutors to my list at the end of the school year.
I'm trying to find a new norm for my schedule after the kids go to bed. They are now going to sleep earlier (Paige before midnight, Colin by 9:30pm) and waking up earlier (Colin 7:30am bottle and then finally up at 8:00-8:30am Paige: 8:00am). So I am trying to get to bed earlier so I can be up and AWAKE with them. This cuts into the time in which I do the housework and run on the treadmill. But personally, I am so emotionally exhausted from Paige's health issues I find myself okay with only the dishes done and two loads of laundry done each night. The main house is a mess but right now sleep is more important to me.
Sunday is Paige's birthday. I'm praying good health keeps with her as she has a day all about her (and Easter too). I'm reducing dairy to the bare minimal for her even though on her Birthday I ordered her her favorite Ice Cream Cake.
I ordered the LiveButterflyGarden.com for the kids. Our neighbors and a friend of mine bought this and thought it was fabulous. Paige is super excited. She's still not "believing" real butterflies will be a part of this. It will be super great learning for her!
We also have pumpkins growing IN our house. Once I have the ability (time and childcare as I won't have room for the kids and stuff in the car at the same time) to go out and buy the netting/stakes etc for the garden I plan on having Paige help me transplant our future Halloween pumpkins. Last year, the deer at the leaves and therefore no pumpkins grew.
Paige is now sleeping on her trundle part of her bed. She expressed how much she liked Colin's little bed and wished her bed was as small as his. So I put her mattress down below and put (gasp) one of our remodel doors on the main part of the bed (until we buy a second mattress for it). She's using the trundle part to sleep and the upper part for talent shows for her toys.
Colin is talking in sentences, has a sense of humor and is truly the most kind, gentle, animal loving, empathetic, boy with absolutely no fear and a drive to do bigger things once he accomplishes the smaller steps. He knows his letters, letter sounds, numbers and can count to 10 by himself. I was hoping Colin would start to give up his naps (Paige did before she was two years old) but I don't foresee that anytime soon. In fact at times I want to crawl next to him and close my eyes too.
Paige LOVES My Little Pony. We DVR all the episodes and she role plays them with her ponies during her bedtime routine. She loves having stories told to her about the ponies sneaking into her school and watching her in the classroom when "no other kid" knows they're there.
Paige is reading at the 2nd grade level now and is super interested in math. I promised a friend of mine I'd send her information on starting her 3 year old into reading (she's already doing a GREAT job) and I have failed to find the time away from my new hobby (sleep) to do so. I will get it done. I wish it was done already for you! I haven't forgotten!

So that's our life update. I'm thinking I'm heading for bed now...and it's only 11:55pm. WOW.

2011-04-03T17:20:00.000-07:00

Out of school and NO FEVER!!!

Paige's diagnosis is bacterial infection. She and a few other kids have caught it and have passed it around to each other consistently. Paige and the other student have been on antibiotics a few times already. The problem is they get better, go back to school, and the other kids that have this bacterial infection (who are NOT on antibiotics) get the now healthy kids infected again. Kids that are susceptible to this type of illness are kids that may have cancer (hence her blood tests), allergies (did that) and other immune disorders (she's been fully vaccinated for all the regular stuff). Her illnesses baffled the doctors her fevers were extreme, her health was super poor and her energy, happiness and over all quality of fun was not anywhere where it was before school started.

I had a few moments in my prayer time where I just pleaded with God to give me the answer as to what is making Paige so sick. A few days later (after Paige was re-exposed to the sick kids again) I came down with her illness...as did Colin. Feeling the symptoms and seeing them in Colin in the stages I had them I instantly recognized them as an infection in the sinuses. Colin and I went to get antibiotics to kill it off. Paige is just starting to get a stuffy nose. I am hoping if she needs antibiotics we'll know soon to kill this vicious cycle. I hear it in a few other family members voices and they are banned from being around Paige until they are treated too. They just got it when I got it.

So there you have it. Ask and you shall receive. Thank you God for hearing my plea and helping me get the answer! That was the fever issue...and 102.8 can GO AWAY!

There's more to the mold issue...but I'll save that for another time...the kids have just vacated the office and are migrating upstairs...

It's getting healthier over here!

2011-03-30T12:19:00.000-07:00

Here's a little bit of Paige feeling better! I cannot believe this is the same child!!! Let me update the comments on the video as Paige has had a day with 98.8 degree temperatures since her leave from school. UNBELIEVABLE!!!

Here's a little of Colin. I love his little strut.

Renovation: the best therapy for Paige!

2011-03-29T14:28:00.000-07:00

Alex teaching Paige about plumbing.

Paige has been doted over by the construction workers and in turn, she has OVERCOME her shyness!!! We have anywhere from 3-8 people in our house working every weekday. We know every one's names and who will be here and when. Paige is busy making each worker pictures and TALKING to them. Yes. She is talking to the workers. She's introducing herself, asking them questions, and handing them pictures. This is HUGE! She has come so far!!! Alex, our plumber's son, is teaching Paige about his tools and fittings.

We pulled Paige out of school. Her body has had enough sickness for nearly four months. Today she has NO fever. I REPEAT she has NO fever!!! This is the first FULL day EVER since Thanksgiving when she hasn't had a fever!!! She is still a little tiny bit stuffy (getting over a virus of some sort) as am I and Colin but she's on the mend! She doesn't want to go back to school to get sick again. She says she feels GREAT!!! She's singing to the workers, dancing and doesn't care people are watching and she wants to play all sorts of fitness games...things she hasn't done for a LONG, LONG time. She doesn't want to get sick again. She wants to be back AT school but without whatever is making her sick. We still don't know the reason(s). But whatever it is, she is home, we have been going to parks and playing around the house (due to renovations) but we will adventure to bigger and better kid things very, very soon.

To tell you the truth I'm nervous to send her back to school. She is doing very well there and the teachers are so wonderful...but it's the sickness that I don't want her to get again. Is it the germs from the nose picking, toy in mouth playing kids (Paige is among them), or is it something else? We don't know. The doctors don't know. I am keeping her home for another week and a half. Did I mention she is BOUNCING off the walls FULL of energy? She wants to TEACH me sign language? She's talking in Spanish, French and "Paige Language" whereas she would have never "preformed" these things when she wasn't feeling well.

Her shyness may have been a part of her life. It is gone. Her illness was such a big part of her life...and all I know is her fever has packed its bags TODAY. I hope the fever has been scared off by Paige's new confidence. Kicking that fever to the curb.... GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR.

Big and Small Stuff

2011-02-22T14:02:00.000-08:00

The boys who did a fabulous job in our yard demolition and remodel (Turner Construction) ARE BBBBBAAAAACCCKK (that's my best Steven Tyler typing from "Back in the Saddle").

BIG STUFF:

This time the boys are doing demolition INSIDE our house. Walls are being knocked down, windows are being punched out (see the upstairs with only one window?....Three will be put RIGHT about THERE). Before and after pictures will take place.

small stuff:

The smaller stuff is Paige gets to be tested with her teachers and authoritive peeps next Tuesday. This may be interesting timing as demolition will also start this week. I hope the transition with her house will not effect her testings at her school life. We'll see. She's being tested for any additional special needs due to her super sensitivity and unrealistic fears. She's a super awesome girl and has accomplished more than her teachers could have asked for in the short time they've worked with her. The only downfall she will not have the same individualized attention next school year. So we're checking things out to see what she may need. I'm sure it's just that she's three and she's learning so much and it's really nothing...but since her teachers have a reasonable concern then it's an interest of mine too. Her teachers ROCK! WE LOVE MRS. H and MRS. S!!!! YAHOOOO!!!!

My time's up!

More later!

Gotta go get that Awesome Girl from school!!!

Welcome February 2011

2011-02-14T23:45:00.000-08:00

It just ended up this way!!!

Hello February. You sure are looking better to us! This is more of a picture blog post but I love pictures! Hope you do too! There's a lot happening this month: Valentines' Day, Colin's 2nd B'day, a possible assessment for Paige's learning/development/etc (I'm awaiting a return call on that one), monitoring Paige's fevers, downsizing our unused belongings to create our house to be as clutter-free as possible, running/walking miles on the treadmill while kids are sleeping, Colin upgrading to a Big Boy Bed, calling the fire department for a tour so Paige can interact with adults and see the firehouse with Colin too, and Paige and I doctoring my 16 year old goldfish until I can thoroughly get their tank cleaned (this weekend).

Below are just pictures and captions. I will write more about the above things mentioned at a later time.

Thank you Kris for Paige's new Pony. It's her new favorite stuffed animal.

Yes. That is painters tape on the wood floor. It's suppose to be a racetrack for bikes and running. Isn't it obvious? Hahhahaha!

Racetrack in use (watch out for the barefooted runners)!!!

Paige got a Children's Bible from my student's mom. It's her new comfort book. My Bible is still under her pillow.

Paige dressed Colin up in her super cape. He knows it's an "honor" for Paige to have done this for him.

Paige and Colin got new to them books from my student's mom. Paige LOVES to read and is reading to both Colin and Sebastian (the cat).

Every boy needs their bottle, kitty and kitty pillow before heading off to bed.

Paige loves reading to Colin.

...and this is how she dressed to go to the childrens' Museum. I am always so proud of her to have confidence in her pickings! This outfit is my second favorite.

Paige's painting. It looks like a person wearing a hat and holding a marshmallow on a stick to me! .

Runners on the track...(Sebastian is not among the ones "running").

Colin jumping off his new big boy bed! He's only one but ready for it!

Paige's first experience with a violin: My Carlo Marcille 1922 Violin!!!

Making Pancakes for breakfast.

Colin's first night in his big boy bed. He did VERY well all night long (only fell out once).

In the morning he decided to not only call for me but attempt to remove his clothes too.

Colin and cat Brewster used to do bedtime stories together...but now that the crib is gone it's not practical.

...Just a bunch of random pictures. Have a great month!!!

Good Bye Labs and Tests!!!

2011-02-10T15:08:00.000-08:00

This has become a common scene in our house. Paige asleep on the couch with a 102.8 fever. We were excited to have her fever brought down to a tolerable 100.0 or best yet, 99.2 so she would drink a sip of something or eat. Just when she would feel better and go back to school it would start all over again on a Friday-Monday night. Some weekends were really great with only 99.5 fevers and no sinus stuff. Other weekends not so good. We nearly had to cancel Christmas plans but her fever broke Christmas Eve morning. So as tired as she was we still continued with plans. Christmas tired her out and she then was starting to get better. Then school started again. She was instantly sick. The pattern was tiresome for us all. At night her fevers would spike causing horrible nightmares and screams from her room for me to save her. One night from 1:45am-6:45am (the time she actually fell asleep) I was in her room (and Colin's after he got woken up) 11 times. Thankfully it wasn't a school night.

Paige with her fever watching TV

This was going on too long. We were in and out of doctors appointments with ear infections, "sinus infections" cold viruses, and of course chronic fevers. Antibiotics, Tylenol and vitamins seemed to be a daily routine over here. Thoughts were running through our minds. Doctors were thinking "lets just watch her"....um yeah. That's what we've been doing for three months and she's still having the same symptoms and no answers. The fevers were bothering me, her tiredness was not like her...she shouldn't have to rely on Tylenol to get her through the day and to help her eat!

Her fevers took away her weekend fun. Colin was super sweet and tried to give her anything that was of importance to him to her. He would find her things around the house and pile them up in front of her. He did whatever he was capable of doing to help Paige too. Once Paige was asleep on the couch Colin and I quietly played downstairs. He tried really hard to remember to be quiet. He is SO sweet.

Grandma Barbara told us about a doctor she liked. Paige was in his office that week and he wanted to run a series of lab tests. Each test was to eliminate the more common stuff: urinary infections, etc. She passed all the common stuff. Next was the blood work (stuck twice and very traumatic) to test for the big stuff: malignancies, immune suppressing illnesses and many more. She, thankfully, passed them too. Ironically her blood sugars were low (even after having a milkshake from Cruise'n Coffee) and she was, again, fighting cold symptoms. Everything (beside the respiratory virus) looked healthy. She still continues to have a fever that has never gone done lower than 90.0 since Thanksgiving. It's her new norm. We're curious to see what happens in the summer when school is not in session.

For now we are celebrating (though Paige is home sick right now) knowing this is minor stuff and it's most likely a constant dose of preschool germs. Before preschool, Paige had had one cold in her life. So from one extreme to another...we're thankful for these little sicknesses knowing there is no big illness or disease that the fevers often indicate. She'll be happy to note she'll get a free range of juice whenever she needs it (her dentist will cringe at that thought) to keep her blood sugars up and still will be able to have her one sugar treat a day.

Thankful and relieved are just a few words we are all feeling right now. I think I will run a few miles on the treadmill (oh by the way that's the big purchase we bought) to release the stress the "not knowing" has created. I'm enjoying the silliness behind me as Paige plays on her computer with Webkinz right now. She is ignoring her lunch on the desk next to her but is drinking juice. That means her fever would be 99.0 if I tested it (we got super cool equipment for fever accuracy). Yes, I now can predict her fevers by her activities/behavior. Let's get rid of those fevers!!!

Colin just woke up so I will sign off. Thank you for the prayers to Paige!!!

Dear 2011

2011-01-10T02:11:00.000-08:00

Dear 2011,

We have started off on the wrong foot. I know I cannot give you back the ashes and make Cocoa alive again, nor can I give you back the lab tests for Sebastian's chronic condition but I can look ahead and see the positive in my life. I want to thank you for the safe return of my wallet and its contents as it contained the cards to the bank(s) I bank at as well as my credit cards.

I want to let you know our Christmas decorations have been put away. Well, most of them anyway. Our outside lights and main Christmas tree has found their home back into the garage. I cannot bring myself to putting away the window ledge lighting/garland nor the medium sized Christmas tree. I admit, I love sitting on the couch surrounded by the Christmas lights and reading while the kids are asleep and the non-sticking snow falls outside the window.

On a happier note, oh dear 2011, I have put aside my strange behavior of not spending money on myself and have a large (in all aspects) purchase coming this way. No it does not have tires, hooves, paws, water jets, or requires a key to enter. It's something I've wanted for a long, long time. Tom wants to "check it out" prior to buying it. Fingers crossed. You can't go wrong with Costco purchases!!! Yes...this is coming from me, who cringes at the thought of buying a new bra (after having two kids) because that would be $30 less I would have to spend on Paige's favorite coffee drink and Colin's favorite snacks for the month. Oh...and the guilt I had for buying the paper back book "Eat Pray Love" at Costco when I couldn't find the book I was looking for for Paige. But I'm going for this purchase and I'll tell you what it is later. You won't all be as excited as I am...but to me it's big! It won't be here for a few months anyway. Did I mention I'm excited? :)

Paige took this picture (ignore my wet hair).
This is us at nearly 10 years of marriage.
...and Tom is the strongest
of all people as he has survived
being married to ME!

I have a feeling 2011 is going to be full of changes for our family. Now that I am getting out of denial and accepting Colin will be TWO years old next month, I am looking at the benefits of no diapers. Oh what a graduation in parenthood that will be! Paige will begin swim lessons (once she turns four) at a private residence in spring by my GOD DAUGHTER!!! Yes, the baby I was a nanny to is going to teach Paige how to swim in her private pool. Time flies. Tom and I will be celebrating our TEN year wedding anniversary (from the 1st wedding) and might even go out for dinner! Thanks Chuck and Kathy for the Chihuahua gift certificate! Another thing for 2011: I plan on writing books for children learning to read. Just got to find the right publisher...know of any?

Our house is still getting prepped for the demolition/remodel (and we're hoping to have saved enough for our estimate by summer) I am still looking for a house in on South Hill or Sehome Hill to buy (no worries...I've been looking for 5 years). I am entering our current house for an audition/contest for an HGTV program...or so I want to do so. If I can find the time to do so next weekend I will be all up for it (just got to have the house spotless before I video tape...with two tiny kids...). What fun if we are chosen! I'm looking forward to seeing the new show and what the design teams do in the selected houses!

I am so thankful to have reconnected with so many friends through Facebook. What a joy it has been to catch up-to-date with friends and see their pictures, share videos, talk to them on the phone and feel as though the miles and years are no longer between us. I am so blessed to have so many awesome friends! Just wish they were here! In this town!

2011, I am asking you to keep friends and family healthy, to find happiness and balance and God in their hearts.

Enjoying this ride called life,

Kendra

December 2010

2010-12-28T23:20:00.000-08:00

The month of December had Paige feeling a bit stressed.

Life gets a bit busy around here and I fail to post updates on this blog. Well actually I spend my Internet time looking at articles, catching up with friends on Facebook and doing my typical research for the latest homes for sale and other stuff...

So the blog is set aside.

Here's the latest:

It's been a hard month for Paige. She sensed the stress her teachers felt about the middle school kids using the preschool gym (they're having a new school built with a gym) during class time, a quick remodel for their classroom (construction redo as the first attempt was not to plans) and the time crunch they had in getting their Christmas performance together (learning songs etc). I sensed it too. The teachers were not in "their best space" and it confused Paige. She didn't enjoy school as much. So the teachers were stressed but still super wonderful...just a different type of wonderful. The stress effects Paige...and she's learning how to handle these situations...slowly. Oddly enough, so am I. We are both learning the same thing together...private school is a bit different than my memory of public school.

Christmas has come and gone and we (the kids and I) are still unwinding from the week. Paige had a horrible cold with a fever peeking 102.8 and hovered in the 100's for a few days. It broke early morning of Christmas Eve (midnight) so we were able to attend the Christmas plans for Christmas Eve and Christmas day. Colin now has the cough Paige has but at a lesser degree and thankfully no fever. I am just catching up on sleep now. Yawn....

Colin is a natural in all he wants to do.

Colin is talking in sentences now. We are questioning colorblindness in him as he has genes from both sides to effect him. Tom is red/green colorblind, my Grandfather was colorblind. I have consistently passed all but two colorblind tests. So who knows? Colin is confused about colors. He knows shapes, the alphabet, the letter sounds and can work a computer and follow complex instructions...but colors confuse him. Red, to him is blue. Green is blue. He knows black, yellow...and white. That's it. The rest is a constant mystery.

Colin will be two years old on his Great Grandfather's 90th Birthday at the end of February. He has the sweetest voice and is amazingly kind. He's a genuine nice boy. Not a mean bone in his body.

We are getting ready for a remodel in our house. Therefore, items are being donated in preparation to the lack of space the remodel will create. Sounds weird...but we are making our master bedroom smaller to make the bathroom bigger. When looking at the plans it looks a lot like my first house's master bedroom suite. Funny how the two homes work well to combine floor plans...

I am still teaching reading. It's opened a few more doors for me in which could take me down more paths if time permits. I just seem to "not feel ready" to take the next step yet when I want to perfect the skills I already am using. I love my students. It's just as exciting for them to see their own accomplishments as it is for me to know they are learning.

Tom is still working away. He has a big production tomorrow and perhaps it will allow for some downtime at work afterwards. He's been fighting Colin/Paige's cold but it seems as though he defeated it. I've been living off of Airbourne and tea and washing my hands until they bleed (seriously).

January will be a big adjustment for the kids. School will be back in session, I will be back to tutoring and life will resume how it was before Christmas break. It's a nice time to have this break...a time to slow down and reconnect with no scheduled plans. Time to think about new years resolutions and a new 5 year life plan.

Hope you all had a fabulous Christmas. Wishing you all a wonderful new year!!!

Catching up...

2010-10-14T01:01:00.000-07:00

It's now October. Life has become a routine now that Paige has adjusted to pre-school. It's been a lot of effort on her teachers and home life to get her to adjust to school. Here's a little about our struggles and how we've reached the level where Paige is at now!

One thing most people don't know about Paige is she is a deep thinker. She thinks herself into an unrealistic fear and believes it to be truth. Once she builds confidence to break the fear it simply vanishes as though it never existed. Bringing Paige to the point where she can eliminate her fears is an unpredictable road that can take months...or in some cases years to conquer (yes toys that moved on their own were a fear so strong we had to remove them from the house...no kidding). So for Paige to do what she's doing now is unbelievable. I am so proud of her!

This is her preschool class. Paige is the girl on the far left. Next to her is a boy with red hair. He is her good friend and takes care of her at school. He holds her hand when she's afraid, leads her to toys to share, makes sure she's okay with others playing around her...he's a genuine nice boy.

When Logan's mom asked him why he was friends with Paige his response was" Mom she's SOOOOO pretty." Here is Logan "falling" for Paige:

I held Paige's hand at Bellewood Acres for her school field trip and Logan joined in too. His mom wasn't there for the field trip so he stayed with us.

Mrs. Ho is the lady with glasses. She's one of Paige's teachers. I am so grateful to her for all her observations and dedication to get Paige ready for Kindergarten. She caught Paige reading (Paige would have been so scared to know she was caught as she fears preforming in front of others) and discretely handed not one but EIGHT books for Paige to HAVE and read at home! Paige clung (literally would not let go) to Mrs. Ho on the first day of school and now she has branched out and keeps Mrs. Ho "in sight" but can stray from her and play with others.

Paige's many fears are about kids and their unpredictable behavior. Her first encounter with another child in our home was a 2 year old when Paige was 18 months old. The encounter was not a good one (the girl behaved like a bully trying to kick Paige and hoard Paige's toys in our home, grabbing, scowling and just plain mean to Paige). So when we invited our little neighbor girl over on a different day Paige freaked. She thought she'd be treated the same way. I believe, her first encounter with another kid is a major part of her social anxiety today.

So imagine Paige's fear when she was being LEFT alone at a school (on day one) with a group of kids she didn't know with a teacher she didn't know (she's never had a baby-sitter) in a school she didn't know (the school moved after we prepped her for her old school ALL spring season long). She told me she was afraid someone was going to take her, that she loved me too much to have me leave her and she couldn't be left here because she was so afraid. Mrs. Ho took my place as I kissed her and left the school. Mrs. Ho became a leg for her to hold onto until I picked her up an hour early (my choice).

I eased Paige into the 3.5 hours of preschool. After day two she was ready for me to pick her up only a half an hour early. Day three she told me not to pick her up early any more. Thank you Mrs. Ho.

She likes school. She is still scared to participate in group activities or individual art projects. I asked her why she is afraid and it makes sense. She told me she is afraid of their paint brushes because they're too big. She doesn't want to ruin her paintings with a big brush when she prefers little brushes to make smoother lines. She doesn't want to do art projects next to the other kids because the other kids might wreck her project when reaching over to take her things.

So I borrowed some of their supplies and had Paige practice with them at home (the paint brushes were the size of house painting trim brushes!). I offered to buy the school a set of new brushes for the classroom until Mrs. Stevenson (her other teacher) said "We have smaller brushes if she'd prefer them." Problem solved. If Paige felt comfortable enough to express her concerns the problems can be easily resolved. But she's not at that point to do so with her teachers yet. So I came up with an idea.

But first let me tell you:

Paige loves The Littlest Pet Shop. She likes small things that fit in her hand. She also likes The Littest Pet Shop Wii game and so I painted a playground for her on a poster board (like on the Wii game) so she could role play with it in her room at bedtime. She played with it none stop. I was very happy as I am not interested in a three year old playing video games as a full time hobby.

Back to my idea: I surprised Paige one morning and brought my newest painting for her Littlest Pet Shop friends into her room (at 3:00 am while she was still sleeping) for her to role play as though they were in preschool. The painting has the main stations at her school: art center, circle time mat, lunch area, indoor gym play area, bookshelves, cubbies...etc. I found a bunch of scrap booking stickers and used them too. The stickers provided her Littlest Pet Shop friends to actually play and remove things from the poster board.

Here are her friends playing on the circle time mat and behind them are more friends eating snack at the table.

These friends are using the art table with scissors and paper (her fear others will take her things and she will not know how to talk to them to get them back).

Paige was once afraid to go down the slides with the other kids there. We practiced before and after school. But as soon as other kids arrived she'd freeze. I told her if she met her goal to go down the slide while there was another kid then she could earn herself a coffee drink (Starbucks kids drink). After listening to her through her monitor playing with this poster board...she did it the next day. She also did an art project with a teacher AND she participated in circle time (meaning she actually touched and sat on the mat). Listening to her on the monitor was heartbreaking. She has so many fears. She kept saying "Mommy wouldn't leave me if she knew I wasn't safe." Those were words from Mrs. Ho. Thank you Mrs. Ho.

Then there was the lunch box issue. She was afraid to open it at school as it was new. She had Mrs. Ho open it for her. So at home we had practice lunches. She'd practice eating her lunch served in a lunch box on her days off of school (she only goes twice a week). She no longer is afraid to open her lunch box in front of others. Plus she gets a note from home with each lunch. Sometimes it's a silly 2 sentence story, others are just an "I love you note."

Colin wants to be just like Paige. He cries when we leave Paige at school. He cries when we pick Paige up and leave the school. He just wants to go to school too! So we stay for the first 15 minutes so he can play with the other kids too. We also are there early to pick Paige up so he can play while I sign all the papers and do volunteer work. He is even learning to paint!

Colin loves Bucca-bucca balls (translation: anything round that can be classified as a soccer ball). I bought these craft balls for Paige to practice handling as her school has a craft area. They are Colin's favorite toy now.

Candy canes in October? I don't know if they're out on the store shelves yet...but these are ours from last year. Yes, candy is safe in our house...just don't eat ours as it could be a YEAR old. I finally threw out the Easter chocolates we had stored in the freezer. The package was ready to pop open!

Colin loves stickers. His Elmo sticker book is truly his favorite. Stickers are now allowed only at the table as I no longer wish to peel them off the wood floors.

If you look real close in this picture you will see a spider web line from the eve down to the green plant below. Oscar lives in the web. Oscar and I had a love-hate relationship. He CONSTANTLY made his web so I would have to pick it's end, remove it and relocate it to a branch on the bush as he blocked the path to and from the water hose. He FINALLY got fed up with me ruining his web daily and anchored his web from the eves on our porch! I now can walk UNDER his web without removing it to the bush!

Paige loves her Littlest Pet Shop Wii game. I love her silly face in this picture. She's laughing and trying to smile at the same time.

Jon and Joanne, our neighbors, gave us free range in their garden. Joanne picked these for us. The kids LOVE flower arranging.

In the midst of flower arranging, Paige discovered two new friends: Yellow Snail and Green Snail

They were put back outside very carefully.

Watching Kipper before bed. It's Colin's turn to watch Kipper now...Paige used to go to bed after this show as well. Here, Paige joined him. He has her blanket, Paige has mine.

Sarge, Grandma Barbara's partner, is blowing those dandelion things and Paige is super excited trying to catch the seeds.

Colin wouldn't leave his book in the car when visiting Grandma Barbara.

The kids were taken to the Childrens' Museum with Grandma Barbara. We all had a great time! Colin really can dance. I love how he busts a move as though he's been dancing all his life

I was so excited to see Paige participate in this dance exhibit! She really had a great time and preformed without a noticeable care in the world that anyone was watching her. Did I mention she PREFORMED in public? Yes. She did!

The magnetic board was really cool too. It was like having a huge gas fireplace for Colin to stash his things in the vents (yes...we're working on preventing that one).

At the Childrens' Museum, there is a store in which Santa is paying attention to a few things. So many cool things there.

Colin loved the little green car out of everything in the store. To him, the world only consisted of the green car. It was very cute watching him play!

Oh yes...that is Colin WALKING up the stairs at 18 months old. I am having a mini "Oh please don't slip" panic attack while watching him climb the stairs!

Colin learning to control the air current toy at the Childrens' Museum. He was very proud!

Playing on the ramp to the tree house at a local school. This school has handicapped access sections on their playground. This is also an excellent advantage for an 18 month old because he can climb up things better with handicapped access too!

School is going much more smooth. Life is really taking on a whole new meaning for Paige. She is working hard at conquering her fears. Plus she's met all the goals I set for her in TWO WEEKS that I thought would take all year! Go Paige Go!!!

2010-09-06T10:29:00.000-07:00

Paige is super silly when she is confident in doing something. She wanted a reading lesson and so I handed her one of my workbooks and asked her to read it to me. I thought hmmm...this might be a great idea to add to my reading tutoring website. However her hair wasn't brushed, clothes didn't match...and so it might not be the best "image" to post for a business website. So instead, I am posting this on this blog because everyone, who reads this, knows hair and clothes don't make the reader.

Paige and her silliness went on and on and on. My favorite part of her reading is when she corrects herself at the very end of this clip. After all...it's all in how you read it to make an impact on your audience! And yes...she puts her personality into her work.

It's Paige with a BIG TALL letter "i" in my name.

2010-09-04T01:57:00.000-07:00

Growing up breakfast was the most important meal of the day...and it used to be my favorite as I knew it would not contain any evil dinner foods (horrible death meat, sinful something casserole, creamy ickies or canned gagging fruit and vegetables). I could guarantee this meal to be exactly to my liking as nearly every day, while growing up, my family ordered our breakfast from our personal chef at the finest gourmet restaurant in town for breakfast: South Side Denny's (in the non-smoking section). It wasn't the thrill of trying, for the first time, a sunny-side up egg just to see the amazement of my parents saucer sized eyes (as I used to shove my food under the couch at home or flush it down the toilet)...instead it was super cool as my dad (an amazing artist) taught me how to draw in 3-D on paper napkins (with the pen in his pocket) while we waited for our meal. These little impromptu drawing instructions (when I asked for them) were very helpful. A little too helpful.

In the second grade when my teacher saw my art homework she asked me to demonstrate it on the board (in front of the class) as she didn't believe I did the work myself. Shocked by her accusations I not only re created the drawing on the board but added my finest learnings in Denny's napkin art since the homework drawing took place (after all a weekend had took place and I learned a few more things). After she gasped when I added a 3-D chimney to the rooftop of the 3-D house equipped with shingles, gutters and a bird nest with an egg hatching I turned around and asked if she had any other suggestions for me to draw. I was excused to my seat and nothing more was said. In the 5th grade, my teacher, Mr. Storms, secretly entered my art in a contest and it won first place and was published in a scholastic magazine. Basically, these experiences all stem back from little instruction napkin drawing at Denny's.

Now, married with two kids I can say my breakfast days at Denny's are over and so are my art lessons. As long as I can convince Paige that healthy food is a good choice and keep Colin from raiding the Popsicles while making (notice I said making...not cooking) breakfast life is good. If I'm lucky I can put both kids at the table and give them coloring tools and a paper to be creative while I form some sort of non-dinner food meal for them both. Usually this works. I love their non-instructed creations and we discuss them during their meal (when Colin is not demanding to watch soccer on TV instead).

Then one day (while Colin was sleeping) I asked Paige (who recently turned 3 years of age) if she wanted to draw with me. I drew a super quick kid-looking dragonfly just for fun. Then, in amazement, and without hesitation, I witnessed Paige drawing my picture on her paper. She wanted "angel wings" on the dragonfly or "owl wings" she wasn't sure which (the lower left wing) so she drew FEATHERS on it! She wrote her name and LOVES to make the letter "i" really tall "because it looks better that way."

The following week we brought out paints. We have really nice paint brushes but she always chooses the crappy ones to paint with (really, the quality of your paintbrush makes a huge difference in anything!). She then wanted me to paint her in a picture. So, again, I created a simple picture of her and I looked over and she was copying me...in black (as we didn't have brown: her favorite skin color because it looks like chocolate). She wrote her name under my painting of her and then realized she "didn't make her "g" right. So she asked me to paint letters and numbers for her to practice.

...and this is the work of a three year old with a crappy paint brush and water colors. She decided to make capital and lower case letters to make it "more fancy."

If Paige wants to practice drawing while her personal chef (me) makes (not cooks) her meal (from Haggens deli or bakery...or Costco) she has access to the art drawers containing everything any artist could want to form their masterpiece just like an endless supply of Denny's napkins and the faithful pen from "dad's pocket." And so the breakfast art journey may have been passed on to Paige. Oh what a journey this could become.

Little Bit of This and a Little Bit of That

2010-07-30T00:28:00.000-07:00

It's been a little of this and a little of that type of month. So many little things have built up to make great things from our neighbors, friends and life in general.

Our retired backyard neighbors, Jon and Joanne are awesome people we call friends. Jon and Joanne not only grow THE BEST vegetables, but they deliver their crop to us whenever they are doing their pickings. These neighbors are also known to have the biggest water slide in the summer (and sledding hill in the winter). This year they came over to invite Paige to play while they had their grand kids visiting.

Paige was definitely hesitant on the water slide yet she did try it...once. She was more interested in their vegetable gardens and the grassy hill. Colin, on the other hand was all for it. They both got to play in their pool before heading home. Even though they live ONE land plot up from us...their view is far more cooler of Mount Baker, the Twin Sisters and other mountains than ours.

Paige midway looking up at the water slide.

Paige checking out the veggies.

We are planning for Paige's new school to be built as we received a letter in the mail that they were MOVING. It would have been nice to have been informed this BEFORE we paid tuition as we spent hours at this school to get Paige prepped for her new school environment. I somewhat feel deceived. Is the school going to be finished on time? It only has skeleton walls up in a pre-used building. School will start soon! Paige is as ready as she'll be. Let's hope there are no delays in starting etc. This private school has an amazing reputation in which I'm sure they'll keep...as well as our non-refundable tuition if we don't like the changes we weren't informed about prior to registration. Tee-hee.

Colin is 16 months old and has grown so much (I can't download pictures from my camera due to lack of memory on this computer...more to come soon). All his "normal" clothes are just about ready for retirement. He doesn't speak in single words. He speaks only in sentences or sign language. If you really listen to what he says you can understand his sentences. He has no fear. We have pillows near the couch as he will LEAP off it and land into the pillows. He will climb hills and run down (fall 90% of the time) and repeat until he can no longer catch his breath. Once he falls, he gets up and keeps going, smiling and laughing the entire way. He likes trains, planes and automobiles, balls, Yo Gabba Gabba, Kipper, music, coloring, playing with other kids (sigh of relief as it is so hard for Paige!) remote controls, animals, feeding the fish, pools, water tables, toys, balloons, nature and bugs, chocolate and fruit (no pasta or foods that are green please) as well as his computer (in which he is learning to use). Colin is super gentle with animals and oddly enough tries to follow the rules (Paige has started to change this for him). He is such a smiley boy and really, really, really tries to make fun out of any situation. He can get a group laughing and he knows it. His sense of humor has really blossomed and we NEVER know what he'll come up with next...or if we turn our head what direction he'll try to escape before we snatch him up and throw him on the couch to be tickle tortured.

Paige also has grown up a lot. She'll be 3 years, 3 months, 3 weeks and 3 days on August 16th! She's very independent. Paige really enjoys reading and is learning to spell and write words. She loves her computer and uses her time wisely on it for a calm down time as well as for entertainment.
She has become an AWESOME reader (thanks Kristine for the totes of donated books!) and will ask for reading lessons when she wants them. I only allow 5 minute lessons when she asks for them and she's already reading at the kindergarten level! Today she blew my mind and picked up a new book from Kristine (our friend and previous teacher) and read the whole page and answered the questions listed! Tom and I just looked at each other before huge praise for her effort.

Paige's memory is amazing. Her association with concepts is beyond measurable. She will recall information from months back and use it in association with a current concept using reasoning and logic to ask her questions. WOW. Mini scientist? Right now she is interested in soldiers and the reasons for the USA flag (at Haggens) at half mast. Yesterday the flag was at full mast. She looked at it and said "Mommy. I'm so happy. Does this mean the soldier who died is now in Heaven? Did his heart take a hot air balloon up to Heaven and did he leave his bones behind? Can he move in Heaven without his bones? Can he talk there too?" Today she was associating the local grainary and the need to feed animals at Hovander park wondering if they get their grain packaged from them...and the list goes on and on.

Paige has many interests. She loves to dress herself. I am proud of her when she wears a dress, sweat pants, a tutu, rain boots and her fairy wings (all at once) to the grocery store. She has her own sense of style and is completely comfortable trying it out. She loves art (painting, coloring, crafts), writing, reading, playing with her favorite animal and TV character toys, nature...anything bug and animal oriented, loves to personify all her animals and make up stories, bike riding, playing with (or against) Colin, parks and ice cream. She is a very picky eater (I wonder where she gets it) and what she does like she hardly eats any of it...except for Starbucks drinks and ice cream.

Tom's chugging away at work. No business trips planned though he has a camping trip planned with friends. Yes I was invited...but no, I think I will just day trip with the kids. My mom will be painting Paige's room for her room make-over while we are "day trip camping." Paige's new furniture is in boxes ready to be assembled too. This will be super cool for Paige. When we get home after driving down for "day camping" we will camp out in the living room to avoid the paint smells. If we want to go back to the camp site, we will the next day. If not, no biggie we'll do parks and other stuff at home.

My tutoring business has changed and is expanding. I have started going to my client's homes to teach rather than they come to mine. It's much easier for me to not have to keep the house immaculate (or best to my abilities) and childcare is made simple: Grandparents arrive! It's a more relaxed environment for us all. Plus I love it. I also love seeing my client's homes. Their lifestyle surrounds me and I get a better sense of who my student is and how to teach them by what goes on while their lesson is in progress. I get a sense of what the differences are in households that home school, go to private school or public school. I am amazed that there IS a difference!!! I would love to have a study done on this someday. Parent involvement and interest TRULY makes a HUGE difference in their child's education. My current student has her whole family involved in supporting her and she has made HUGE progress in only 5 lessons. I LOVE my job!

Tom and I celebrated our 9th wedding anniversary last Tuesday from our 1st wedding. I still tease him about not buying me the 3 pygmy goats he promised me. But perhaps he has an excuse as he was JUST coming out of an anesthic and the surgeon stated: "Kendra, this is not the time to go shopping."(...damn!!! Busted!!!). So I bought 3 figurine pygmy goats and now Paige has confiscated them. Yep. Everything I own goes to the kids... I will eat the crust off a piece of bread and two kids will be at my feet (they were just fed) asking for the bread in my hands. So now I just eat lettuce, tomatoes, green veggies and their left overs in their presence!

More pictures and videos to come after more memory is created in this computer beast!
Happy last few days of July!
~Kendra

Advertisment on this blog...

2010-07-26T21:51:00.000-07:00

Hello all.

Yes. I know...ugh...advertisement is on this blog. BUT I put it there. Here's the deal: advertisers scan my blog for things that are relevant to their business. If I write about Harleys, Harley advertising comes up (deals, deals, deals!). So I thought to myself. Hmmmm. I cannot click on these sites as it would be fraud (I get paid for people clicking on the advertisements on the blog) but I can check out their websites separately. For example: the Garage Party for women wanting to ride Harleys is EXACTLY what I want but didn't know it existed. Nor does it in the state of Washington...but knowing that there is something out there is more than I knew yesterday!

So I hope the advertising is not annoying. Some of it may be of interest. I'm not sales pitching just mentioning it's there for my own personal knowledge...and if I'm interested in a few things...perhaps you may be too.

So with that said. I will post more blogs about things in which I'm interested. Off Facebook and more blogging...oh this should be a shift!

Happy week!

Kendra

30 minutes of life

2010-07-24T22:14:00.000-07:00

Last night I had a little conversation with God (a one sided prayer is more like it). In it I had asked about opening myself up to more opportunities, asking if I was on the right path, if I should be focused on this and that etc. Then I asked for the simple things: to be shown what life would be like if I were to have my Fat Boy and let me experience it "just for a moment." Also to ask God to let me save the money need be for the motorcycle by carefully budgeting and financial planning. Prayers, are always answered (I believe) if you take the time to notice the little things in life. However, I'm a bit more stubborn than most people. Okay A LOT more stubborn and I believe God understands this, Therefore He answered my one sided prayer in a few separate ways as clear as clear could be plus added a few bonuses on the way!

Now for a little background information: For those who don't know this, I am huge into motorcycles and have always wanted to buy one since I was 18 years old. The Harley Fat Boy is my dream bike. The unusual thing about me is I am intimidated to learn in a group setting and therefore I hire teachers for private lessons for anything I want to learn that I can't do alone. Riding a motorcycle is one of them. I have a few people willing to be hired to teach me if I provide the bike. After I am taught, I will take the motorcycle safety class when I gain more confidence in the newness of a group setting. Okay with that said read on....

So while driving on the freeway I nearly had a "double take moment." There in front of me was a girl who LOOKED like me, had hair down to her butt like me, and was wearing NON leather clothes like me while riding a FAT BOY. Now this was a "Back to the Future" moment and I was mesmerized. I wanted to be her at that very moment...just to know what being on that Fat Boy (solo) was like. "God, what the heck can I do to deserve something like that?" I laughed. Then while pulling into the mall parking lot there was a motorcycle safety class in progress (remember my plans with motorcycle riding...private riding lessons and then group lessons? This was just in reverse order here with the end results of being a solo rider first). I pulled into Target and watched for a few seconds. I saw the bikes, the groups of people (my fear as I want to do everything solo) and I observed just enough to let the fear (the newness) slip away. I wanted to be there in that class...and I'm now motivated to do so. It just took a bit of "throw me into the future and back pedal to get me to that point." That's what I needed to reach that one goal of mine to ride a motorcycle! Thanks God.

Next I pulled into the JC Penny parking lot. Got out of my car and started walking to the store...and I heard a voice (no not GOD!) call "Hey Kendra." I look up and see Matt pull into a parking space with Patty and the boys! I haven't seen them in a long time. It was a happy/sad greeting as they will be moving out of state for 4 years while Matt finishes his degree to become a doctor! You go Matt! They informed me they are leaving on Thursday. Heartbreak. But a happy heart break as it will provide them with opportunities and the future they are working on to reach their dreams. We spoke briefly but it was all that was needed as we (Patty and I worked together) are good friends and know that bond never really goes away. Thank you God for having us show up at the exact time to say our Good-byes! Or hellos for later!

Next stop was the lingerie department. Now, hold on readers...this is no biggie...if you know me, you'll know I have no problems discussing this stuff...so you can skip over this paragraph if need be. Or you can continue as you are doing so at this point. I had to be refitted for a new bra (two kids can really change the size of your boobs). After being fitted by a new hire and her training person I found the bras I wanted. I asked the older of the two employees if she knew Jill, an employee who had helped my Grandmother with the years of shopping for underwear and bras (a common Christmas present we grandchildren would receive...not just any type...but matching sets from our awesome Grandma who wanted us to feel awesome too). Jill had retired before my Grandmother was no longer capable to shop. I was bummed as though I wanted to carry on the tradition of shopping from Jill as my Grandmother spoke so highly of her. The employee said nothing but raised her name tag up for me to see it. It read "Jill." I asked if I could hug her (an odd request but she knew my Grandmother so well she fully understood). Yes...I hugged the lingerie woman! I thanked her for all she had done for my Grandmother. She smiled and stated she understood as she is caring for her ailing mother now too and took on a 10 hour a week position after 10 years of retirement. So, tearing up, we both parted ways to save face for one another. I had always wanted to meet Jill and thank her and I was able to do so TODAY. Thank you God to have me shop on the rare chance she was working after 10 years of retirement!

Then I took my bras to the check out stand. HALF PRICE? WOW! My Grandma had expensive taste. She wanted "the best" for her Grandchildren in all the necessities in life. Bras and underwear met that category in her mind. Therefore, buying two of my Grandma's tasteful bras at an unplanned half price was a $34 savings! Thank you Grandma if you were with me at that moment! That was one thing I had wanted to do for a LONG time. Buy bras and meet Jill. And it would be SO my Grandma to provide any shopping experience and top it off have it on sale! In fact she'd make a joke about it being "half dressed" as that's all I bought. I had a great laugh.

So now I am beaming with life and light.
1) I saw what it would be like for me to reach my Fat Boy dream.
2) I saw the safety class in action (and now can reduce my fears from being in "such an important class group").
3) Said well thoughts and an offering for a helping hand in their move to my dear friends Patty and Matt knowing THEY are meeting their dreams and are on the right path for them (setting a great example for everyone wanting to reach their dreams too!).
4) Met a woman who knew and adored my Grandmother and had a moment to thank her.
5) Then to have the bras my Grandmother would have wanted me to have be marked HALF off at the counter was a bigger bonus as I don't buy myself anything to save money for all the other things in life for the kids and house.

And this was all in a half an hour. God you work in subtle ways and it can even be understood by someone as stubborn as me. I know this doesn't sound like much to a person reading this, but I asked God for specific things last night. Today I had clear coincidences to think about how they all played a part in 30 minutes of my life. Opportunities...if you ask for them, they will happen. All you need to do is ask.

Up dates from June 2010

2010-07-01T23:52:00.000-07:00

Paige loves many things these days:
Bugs (spiders and ladybugs are her favorite), princesses, Colin, animals, reading, writing, typing, computers, dance, taking pictures, anything art, organizing her room, playing at parks and overcoming her many fears she's had for nearly all of her life. She doesn't want anyone to be left out. So she includes Sebastian, our cat, whenever possible as he makes "the prettiest princess cat."

This is a pen I bought at Cost Cutter. I hardly ever shop there for many reasons but this was the day to go as I had to buy my car tabs. The bank forgot to give the kids their stickers (drive through kid's reward) and so I told them I'd buy them each a sticker at the store after I got my tabs. Cost Cutter had NO stickers. But they had this Lightning McQueen pen and a Princess pen just like it with three princess characters on it. I bought them both...one for each kid. I turned over the princess pen and everything looked fine (even though it was made in China). no warning other than age limit on it. I gave Paige her pen that night. Colin wasn't ready for his yet so I held onto it until he could be supervised with it. The next day I was ready to give Colin his pen and the little notepad on the top and I turned it over to cut it open. This is what I saw:

Yah...I threw Paige's pen away instantly. Her package didn't have this sticker on it. Colin's pen had a removable sticker on it and it was actually put on the package. I contacted Cost Cutter, their corporate office AND the health department to tell of this incident (there was a law passed about products a while ago). Cost Cutter did not return calls etc. The health department was sickened. Then while at Haggens', I saw THE SAME PENS there. I pulled aside a manager, told them the situation and he pulled them off the shelf. Some products had the sticker OTHERS didn't...and they were the same pen. Perhaps mentioning to a Store manager (who is one of the owners) the words Cost Cutter, Health Department...and product Haggens is selling made an impact. So if you see these neat pens with the cute paper pad on them DON'T BUY THEM!!! These pens are about $4.00 each. I'm sure they'll end up selling them at cheap stores that sell this type of stuff (dollar stores, Big Lots...etc). Be careful! Look at all labels!!! Look at other packaging in case there are stickers missing on the one you're holding in your hand!!!

Paige age 3 years and one month.

Tom bought a Wii. It's super cool. I don't have a lot of time at night (the only time I can use it) when the kids are asleep so I don't get the full benefits of it as fast as I'd like. The program always makes funny comments to me about using it at 2:00am. Paige wanted to try it so I helped her with the balance games. Colin then wanted to try it. He climbed up on it as though he was a big person and waited for someone to help him "balance" too. I often forget how Colin is fully capable of doing things a 3 year old can and he does a great job reminding me .

This is one of those pictures when you'll look back and see plants when they were SMALL and kids when they were tiny. And wonder where all the time went during the difference of size comparisons.

Paige and Colin playing with the solar system. Apparently Mars and Earth needed to be closer to the sun and so Paige is making adjustments. This model rotates around and lights up. Paige and Colin love science things. We read and do science stuff whenever the interest sparks.

Colin outside. Paige took this picture. I love it.
Colin is interested in soccer, soccer, soccer and soccer. Also known as "Bucka-bucka-bucka bah." That's soccer ball in Colin language. He also loves cars (the movie and match box cars), chocolate, music, dancing, coloring, books, remote controls, TV on (AKA a STRONG German accent: tv ahhhh), flowers, bugs and soft things (pillows and blankets).

Wrapping paper tube + tape + match box cars = hours of fun.
I put the tube and rested it on their tunnel toy and put a few things down it to spark an interest. Colin instantly went to pull carpet fibers off the stair's carpet and let them go through the tube. Then he started with the cars. I ended up taping the tube on a slope off the back of the couch. We attached several tubes and had match box car races. It was super cool. They were equally participating and showing similar interests even though they are nearly 2 years apart. Colin entering Paige's life has been one of the best things for her (though she'd disagree about that comment if she could remember when he was brought home). Her social skills have greatly improved, her confidence has really been boosted and she wants to teach Colin everything. It's super sweet.

We (okay hired help) added a fence to the front yard today. This is to help prevent kids from falling off the upper level if they're riding bikes, kicking a ball or catching a ball. The rule is NO FEET on the fence to prevent kids from climbing and jumping off (hence it's only 3 feet tall for that reason). I just wanted something that could give me a few more seconds of reaction time if need be...and this fence provides it! Yay!

Things are running silly over here. The World Cup has taken over my husband's brain (he took two weeks off of work to watch soccer for about 4-8 hours a day EVERY day). I think his name is Tom. I'm not sure. Who's the guy I married? I don't think I've seen him...hahhaahahahaha!

I've been tutoring 3x's a week for a few hours a day with 4 students. I have a 5th and 6th student on my waiting list. This is a busy time for a "stay-at-home-mom" to work 9 hours a week (thank gosh for Bah-Baay to help with childcare while I work). I love being self employed.

And so it is 1:00am and Paige's monitor is silent. I must go pick her up off the floor SOMEWHERE in her room and put her back in bed. This is my routine about 90% of the week.

My Story to Paige

2010-06-08T01:52:00.000-07:00

Paige loves this story I made up for her when she was tiny. For some reason I am going to post it.

Once the moon was shining bright in the night looking down at all the sleeping people and animals. He (as the moon is male you know) was a bit lonely up in the sky all alone...and hungry too. So he looked around and noticed all the stars. There were so many stars.

One star in particular was a wishing star. A little girl named Paige had placed her wish upon it. It was a special star and its job was to keep all her wishes safe. This star had magic dust on it and kept all other kid's wishes away from it. It was Paige's star to keep up in the sky.

The moon thought it was the prettiest star in the sky. "I wonder if anyone would.....(MUNCH) notice if I just (MUNCH) ate a few (MUNCH) stars." The more the moon ate, the brighter it became. The moon ate Paige's star!

Before morning came the moon had eaten all the stars in the sky. The sun was starting to come up. While passing the moon from coming down she (as the sun is female you know) said "Moon? What happened to all the stars?"

The moon, surprised by her questions, said nothing as he was too full to speak yet let out a "BURP. " Little pieces of star dust came out of the moon's mouth from Paige's star.

That night when the sun was coming down and the moon was going up the sun spoke again.
"Moon? What happened to all the stars?"

The moon couldn't handle the star dust from Paige's wishing star any more and SNEEZED! Tiny pieces of stars shot out of the moon's mouth and filled the sky with it's little glow.

One of those little stars was brighter than the rest as it was a Paige's wishing star. Paige's wishing star had created enough dust to make the moon sneeze out all the other stars! Paige's wishing star shines brighter than all the other stars. And that is the power of wishes!
(we look into the sky to find her wishing star).

The end.

Hmmmm.

2010-05-16T13:47:00.000-07:00

I have had people ask me "What are you thinking about Kendra?" so many times lately. Usually I keep my thoughts private and just smile. However I decided to be proactive (oh Lord give me mercy) and write down what I was thinking in 20 seconds. You are about to enter the mind of Kendra. Welcome to the thoughts of Kendra 101.

TWENTY SECONDS GO!.....

1) The TV show "The Biggest Loser" inspires people to stay fit and encourages healthier eating. Perhaps I should contact the show and ask if they'd be interested in starting a restaurant chain with The Biggest Loser Name on them and have their contestants run or own them. Perhaps they would add a show about the restaurants and their regular customers (showing before and after stories of their weight loss etc).

-So I contacted them and told them my idea.

2) There needs to be some type of malleable cloth pad that can wedge itself around the drum of the washing machine to clean out any loose cat hair in it and the groves around the front.

-I created one later but it's not marketable worthy...just for my own use.

3) To eliminate the problems associated with people using their I-phones while driving there needs to be some type of invention for cars to be able to have the "internet playing while driving." Perhaps while the car is in PARK you can activate what you want the internet to "read" to you while you drive by creating a "play list." All you need to do is type in the URL you want and it reads (like a book on CD) to you while you drive. You can then speak while pressing a button on your steering wheel for the program to scribe what you want written if you are hoping to "respond" or "comment" to what was "read." Time management at it's finest.

And that was 20 seconds of the mind of Kendra.

I've decided to be proactive and do something with my thoughts. ...and that was 20 seconds while trying to stuff a blanket into the washing machine. Are you SURE you want to know what I'm thinking?

So if you happen to see a new show or restaurant with the Biggest Loser name on it I hope it makes you smile. And if technology becomes my thoughts RUN!!! hahahhah.

Just little updates with pictures

2010-05-15T22:05:00.001-07:00

I entered a Combat Veteran raffle ticket for a $14,000 Harley (that I'd sell to buy this Fat Boy Harley). The winner will be announced in September. So I decided to "put it out in the Universe that I'd like this Harley please." The raffle is to raise money for vets coming home and needing money for housing and living expenses. It's an awesome cause and the winning prize is super sweet. I had promised myself a Harley when I was 30 years old (instead Paige and Colin entered our life). I was going to buy one in Bellevue back in 2004. Instead I bought a riding lawn mower and a few other big expenses...so I sacrificed my "dream" (sigh....whoa is me) for years and now I'd like my Harley. Just to have and ride for a bit here and there.

Here's colin in the upper level of the front yard:

Paige was asked to pick all the tulips in our yard before demolition began. She loves flower arranging.

Colin got his own blanket that Linda made for him recently. Here is Paige and Colin playing on it in his bedroom.

Paige watching the workers and waiting to give them the flowers in her hand.

Did someone say dirt? Big toys? I'm there dude!

Colin's prized treasure for the day...a rock.

Our house May 2010

2010-05-15T21:40:00.000-07:00

So we have decided to stay in our current house and not move (I can hear the sigh of relief from our wonderful friends and their aching backs from all our others moves). We started out with our house yellow and had a strange landscaped front yard.

Here's Colin and Paige in the Kubota getting ready to rip our yard apart!

And here's our house in it's new color and the yard ready to be ripped up.

The boys from Turner Construction did this ENTIRE work in 4 working days. They were so amazing!!! I do need to post pictures of the fully finished project...which first I need to capture the pictures...(that will come later).

The upper level is now sod. The middle level is heather and many other plants from our backyard (only heather is shown in this picture). More plants will be transplanted soon. The lowest level is lava rock. It's a nice addition. The boys kind of "surprised" me with it. They kept adding things here and there that was not on the contract but decided "it looked better...and no additional charge." Hot damn!

So we are staying in our house. We have the same contractor coming out to redo our master bedroom and bathroom. It will be nice to knock out the current closet and put in french doors and a deck off the master bedroom, add a walk in closet and shower in the bathroom and move the bedroom door down the hall a bit. In all our spare change time though. It took us a few years to save for the wall as it will also be as long to save for this project. We are looking at permits and all the stuff that goes with it so when we are ready we can attempt to "sail" through it without too many hiccups.

May

2010-05-03T14:03:00.000-07:00

I have been busy with Facebook these days and neglecting this blog as you all know how much time it takes to post pictures...especially loads of pictures! So some of these pictures are Facebook repeats. Our front yard is almost done (more on that later) and I will post pictures after the rain stops so I can take a recent one as of this weekend. Okay...back to the pictures.

Here's Colin loving stickers. He got a sticker book for Paige's Birthday. Yes. Both kids get presents on each other's B'day. Kind of more fun that way.

Paige got a princess sleeping bag. She loves it and it is her "new bed." However when she has a day when she forgets the rules this is the first thing to leave her room. Currently it's waiting for her to earn it back.

Paige's hair is so awesome. Here's a quick french braid Duboo did for her. No hair tie required. Paige's hair just STAYS put when styled. Now, Paige doesn't stay put...only her hair... (but that's another story).

Colin eating Paige's B'day cake. He much prefers a fork over eating with his hands.

Paige is THREE years old now! Every day I am asked the question "Am I still three?" Explaining "time" to her is very interesting.

Paige and her cuteness.

Paige and Colin love bubbles. Paige has discovered shooting bubbles down with a water spray bottle is an awesome sport. Clay shooting 3 year old style? She's really a great shot! She made this game up herself!

Paige's little B'day cake. We don't do sugar in our house and so this cake was a big deal. We stopped doing sugar after Christmas. Unfortunately that means Paige lost a pound and now is super rail skinny at 28lbs and 3ft 1.5 inches tall. Colin is not big enough for his car seat to turn and face forward but weighs 22lbs. I think Colin is a few inches under 3 feet tall. Does that give a size comparision?

They both like to paint. Paige loves to paint with her toes. Colin is learning to finger paint and Paige is toe painting.

I was trying to get a picture of them together and this was the only one with Colin and Paige sitting at the same time. Terrible picture but they are at least semi-sitting (this was after cake...can you tell by Paige's face?).

Here's a picture of Grandma Barbara and Grandma Duboo are celebrating Paige's Birthday. Chuck, Bah-Baay and Sarge are not in this picture but were there too. Wendy came to celebrate the next day as she was working during the party. Thanks Wendy! Thanks Toni for the Birthday card!!! (oops...the picture was erased...and so just know there's another picture that will be posted later...hard to type with two kids trying to use the same computer at the same time.....).

I took this picture as Colin is going through a hugging phase with Paige. I have video of him running around the house chasing her trying to give her a hug. That, too, will be posted at a later date.

Paige painting with her toes so her fingers don't get sticky. The paint can't be seen in this picture though...

Paige plotting and planning her next super silly moment.

There are over a thousand pictures taken since the last time I posted something. Therefore I will catch up at a later time. So to most my friends who are reading this and have discovered if their friends are posting updates on their blogs they are either pregnant or on vacation...that is not the case over here! Just been pre-occupied with other things.

Updates from last week.

2010-04-11T19:53:00.000-07:00

Here's Brewster and the reason why you are not suppose to get up from our table if you aren't finished with your meal. Brewster is not often left unattended in the main house...and this is why.

Colin coloring in a Lightning McQueen coloring book.

Colin discovered the Easter eggs leading from Paige and his room right away. He picked them up and banged them together and had a good 'l time with them. Paige was definitely excited but shows it in a very reserved why. Almost as if she's resistant to accepting presents (which is normal for her...and has been all her life).

So Paige wanted to be carried downstairs and have Colin find all the eggs. They all contained Play Doh in them so Colin was only able to enjoy the outer shell. Paige is now eager to play with the eggs after the Easter excitement hype has died down.

Here's Colin's Easter basket. He noticed it right away and wanted to see his new loot.

Colin checking out his Easter basket.

The first thing he goes for is the Lightning McQueen ball. So cute.

Here's Paige's Easter basket. She took nearly all day to look through it as it was a bit overwhelming for her. Perhaps she didn't want the attention on herself and a camera to go with it...not sure. She doesn't say these things. She just wants to quietly look at things and take it really slow.

I did manage to get a few pictures when she was looking at her basket:

More Easter basket finds:

Ditto:

This is Colin's water toy. It's way cool. Boats and trucks in a "water slide" track with water wave motions and all. This is the "tile room" toy. Also known as if you leave it on the floor Sebastian will drink out of it so pick up your toys!

Colin has mastered the concept of a spoon. He's such a good eater. At least I have one child that will eat food! Geesh...Colin is 13 months old. Paige is nearly 36 months old (in a few days)...and there is only 6lbs difference in their weight. Colin is 22lbs and Paige is a whoop'n 28lbs.

Paige and her bike helmet. She's busy watching her favorite show and couldn't be bothered by removing her bike helmet.

I told her "whatever you do Paige, DON'T smile..." and this is what happened:

This is Colin ready to go down for a nap but still wants to play....

We put the wrap around couch and 3 cushion couch together in the shape of a triangle then pile the cushions in the middle. The kids love it.

Why put the cushions in the middle? So when Colin falls head first he lands in the pillows and I can cook while he leaps off the couch.

(Ican't figure out the glitch for mismatching photos with their description...perhaps I'll try later:)

Colin loves forward and backward rolls.

Paige is nearly 3 years old. Wow.

Colin is watching the seagulls eat the bread we threw out for them.

He loves animals. I LOVE that he LOVES animals!!!

This was Paige's 1st Birthday present from her Uncle Bill (B2). Colin has just discovered it and has the same interest in it. I love these toys! It makes Paige have interest in them again and they play together with the pull toys...making very LOUD clattering sounds on a wood floor...sigh.

More of Paige a few days before her B'day.

Yes. This is a bubble. THREE HOURS after we were done blowing bubbles inside the house I noticed a bubble sitting on part of our basket's handle. This bubble is 3 hours old. The vial it came in stated "long lasting bubbles"...we'll yes they sure are. I believe they are Willy Wonka's Non-Edible Bubbles...or at least that is what they should be called.

It is never a dull moment going in to turn off Paige's light after she's asleep. On the monitor I heard her talking to her animals and telling them how much she loved them etc. I came in to check on her and she had all her animals on the floor and she was sitting amongst them. Then when silence came over the monitor...I went upstairs and had to get the camera. She took all the animals onto her bed and fell asleep.

Again...Paige almost 3 years old!

Here's the scoop on our animals. Inside our house lives Cocoa, Brewster, Sebastian, Zoe and Harley. Outside lives the rest of our feral clan. Amongst the feral cats are "Mikey" and "Cliff." Long story behind their names but Cliff is a girl. They have been trapped, spayed/neutered and one has received much needed treatment. Mikey and Cliff are definitely buddies. So they stay at our house and sleep in the beds we have for them in there outside house. They look SO healthy now. Uggg...if you could only see them before they were trapped. They nearly look like indoor cats! Yeah!

Recent Funnies:

Tom asked Paige if she wanted any of his chili beans the other night. Paige looked into the bowl of chili and said. "No daddy there's angels in that chili." She proceeded to point out the angels she saw to the blind eye of an adult. She didn't eat any chili.

Paige really would like to see her imaginary friend's house who lives "way up in the sky." She often talks about him and can't understand why she "can't go to his house but he comes to ours."

Paige is very crafty in trying to procrastinate with NOT going to sleep. She's tried the "I'm hungry" routine, I just need "one more thing from downstairs" routine etc. Tonight she told me she was afraid of going to sleep because she doesn't want to dream of monsters. So I had her draw me a picture of what the monster looked like. She was beaming ear-to-ear with her procrastination smile and I played it out with her. She now has earned the right to have a few crayons in her room unsupervised (art usually belongs at the dining room table). She also has a big artist notebook to draw her monsters to help her sleep. This might be the best idea yet to let her draw before going to sleep. I haven't seen her walk downstairs...or heard her call for me through the monitor...then again, I might need to check on her....

Probably should do so right now...

This week

2010-03-29T21:42:00.000-07:00

This has been a hard happy/sad week and it's only Monday. To start I will say my morning began at 8:10am. I had the pleasure of video taping my neighbors for their event application. What a fun family. While taping I did my absolute best not to show sadness as I knew in less than an hour my cat Clyde would have to be put down. Clyde was put to rest today at 9:00am. He had the same illness as Davidson who died last August. Basically there is no humane cure (feeding tubes and all sorts of hospitalization) and his organs were shutting down. I believe in quality of life and therefore Clyde and I said our good-byes. In a total of two hours I had helped someone with a possible life changing event with their video application and lost one of my four-legged children. Clyde will be cremated as I was not fully prepared to purchase a coffin and provide a burial site for him with limited time and childcare. Wednesday I will receive his ashes and bury him next to Davidson. Clyde was a 10 years old. The youngest of any animal in our house.

Colin has started to enjoy coloring. Perhaps its the assembling of pens and their lids that truly entertains him....so I put big Lego's on his highchair and he can stack them as tall as his arms can reach. He snickers at his end result.

Out our front window we get to see the bus pick up one of our neighbors and drop her off after school. It's a big event over here as buses are "so cool" in both Paige's and Colin's mind. I looked outside and thought wow. We have Mt. Baker, several ball fields, a train, highway and in general an overview of the mountains from our house. Now a bus to go with it. This is one great house.

Paige and Colin are trying out the duck...I brought it out from the garage for a friend's going away party I was having...so they had to test it out.

And Colin turned on the TV with the remote by himself. This was a big event as Tom doesn't want him to have the remote (Santa bought him his own for Christmas). However, I saw no harm in him looking at it on the couch where he couldn't drop it or erase any programs Tom had recorded. So...the moment he turned on the TV by himself he said "TV sh-sh-sh."

Paige is very interested in flowers...and wearing her boots on the wrong feet. We fixed them after the flower picking. She was in need of a flower before our grocery store shopping trip.

This is our office. Or part of it. This is Paige's corner of the office and the wrap around section of my computer desk. Otherwise known as Colin's window lookout. Everyone but Colin has a computer in this office.

Colin is feeling a bit left out. So I let him type on my computer...but WORD is so boring when Paige has neat programs she's working on on her computer!

The playroom is 99% finished. Colin and Paige both love it. If I could redesign our house this room would be attached to the side of the kitchen where I can see them better.

I have a basketball hoop on the back of the art table's chair. It seems to be more "of height" for the kids than hanging on a doorknob. Behind the hoop and chair is Paige's bike. This is her "garage space."

So this is Monday. It seems like a whole week has gone by and it's only been a day and a few hours. I did enjoy having a going away party for a friend of mine yesterday and hope for the need of a future welcome back party. I wish you safe travels tomorrow morning Sarah and Spencer!

Feb-march pictures

2010-03-17T01:14:00.000-07:00

I selected a few from 720 pictures off the camera from the past 3 weeks. There are many more from the beginning of February...I'll post those later. Why haven't I been posting pictures? I spend most my Internet time on Facebook not on blogging. So I am playing "catch up" with this blog for those who are not Facebook users.

Colin loves paper towels. Give him a roll of paper towels and he'll be entertained for some time.

Paige loves to roll around in the paper towels and pretend it's mud.
Paige loves mud...mud puddles etc.

Colin after his first drawing. He's admiring the back of his artwork. You can kinda see the picture on the "backside" if you look REALLY close.

Paige still loves painting. She's painting a playground.

Colin and Paige both love magnets. They spend a lot of their time arranging them from the fridge, dishwasher and metal baby gate.

Paige enjoys finishing art I start. I painted an outline of a cat and she did all the rest herself!

We had a cold over here. Here's Colin and his little red checks trying to breathe through his mouth. Even his hand signal for "up" was weak.

Paige was wiped out too. We allowed TV for extended periods of time...

Here's Paige sick with a cold:

Here's Paige healthy and happy:

Colin getting better....

The baby gate at the bottom of the stairs happened. Colin is checking it out. He's not impressed. He's been examining it from every angle (trying to post pictures takes a long time so I am unable to post the funny angles at this time). Then today, while we were playing on the bottom floor, Paige needed to go upstairs. I realized we had the new gate up and stated "oh crap...hold on Paige, I'll help you over the gate." Colin remembered this and later when we were on the main floor he walked over to the new gate and stated "Oh cwap" while tapping it. So, I believe, this is now called the Oh crap gate. But I am not going to mention so in front of the kids again (I hope).

Colin has learned how to do forward rolls. He just needs the little push once he gets in position. He thinks it's super fun.

Colin not so little anymore.

This was taken in February. He was eating his first egg.

Let's see, there are so many more pictures left out. Tom celebrated his 40th Birthday, Colin had his 1st Birthday and Paige will have her 3rd Birthday at the end of April. Paige is officially enrolled as a preschooler and will start her new school in September. The teacher has met Paige and has also invited me to stay in the classroom to help whenever I like.

Our animal household is expanding. Our 5 star restaurant outside has spread the "mews" and more cats are coming our way. Strays. So they will be spayed and neutered through the programs I used for the other stray cats once I gain their trust and trap them. They will then be released from my deck once they have healed from surgery.

Our neighborhood is ever-so-changing with new neighbors and more kids. We will have our front yard renovated this May.